Day 4 - Understanding ISO

Today we are going to focus on the ISO setting. I am going to keep this super simple so that you retain this information and can easily apply it when we start shooting pictures. One of the three basic photography principles, otherwise known as the “Exposure Triangle” is ISO. It is super simple to understand. The ISO is not only found in DSLR’s, but a lot of point and shoot cameras have this very feature as well.

ISO settings

The camera above features the ISO setting of 100 and is also a great example of how the ISO is featured on the LCD Panel

ISO settings starting at 100, going all the way up to 6400 or more, depending on your camera. A lower ISO number (100 for example) will give you a sharper, cleaner picture. But it requires MORE LIGHT. The newer your digital camera, the higher the ISO settings it is likely to have.

A high ISO number (1600 for example) needs LESS LIGHT to capture the picture (low light situations, like Christmas Morning). Pictures will be grainier the higher the ISO (6400 for example). So, being in a dark area will allow you to still capture an image, but it will have some grain in the picture.

This graph above is a great representation of basic ISO settings for different lighting situations, both indoor and out

So, what do bee's have to do with ISO anyway?

Let's find out, shall we? When I first started out, I learned the analogy of the worker bees. Think of your ISO as the NUMBER of worker bees it takes to bring in light. The only job of these worker bees is to buzz around, gathering light for your pictures. If you are in a dark area, you need more worker bees out gathering light. So if I have an ISO set at 1600, I need 1600 worker bees gathering light, if I have my ISO set at 6400, I need 6400 bees out gathering light, thus more light was brought in for my picture. In a well lit area I only need to send out a few bees… say, 200 bees that would equal my ISO setting of 200, or 400 bees that would equal my ISO setting of 400.

Simple, isn’t it? See, not to worry, you are catching on quite well.

Now that you know how your ISO works, I want you to keep reminding yourself over the next couple of days about the worker bee analogy. Keep running it over and over in your mind until you can visually see those bees working to gather light and how many are being sent out to gather light as well. This will help you when we put the Exposure Triangle together and start using our cameras. Great job today! Don’t you just love learning? And, just think, at the end of these 31 days together, you will look back and be amazed at how far you have come. It’s so exciting! For more detailed reading check out http://mansurovs.com/what-is-iso-in-photography

Today’s Takeaway and To Do’s:1. Remind yourself of the worker bees, visualize those bees gathering light2. IMPORTANT Grab your camera and your manual. Find in your manual how to set your ISO 3. Now, turn on your camera, follow the directions found in your manual for ISO settings and get familiar with how low and how high the ISO settings go in your camera (200-1600 for example)

See you tomorrow!

Deb

Photo: ISO 400 shot in a shade of trees. A sunny day and I didn't need to gather too much light as enough was provided for me from the sunny day

Picture: ISO 800 Shot inside an abandoned house with the sun directly behind her. Her front was completely dark or shadowed. But, by sending out more bees by bumping up my ISO, I was able to have enough light to take this picture

Picture: ISO 200 Lots of light available from the open sun

Picture: ISO 1600 See the grain in the picture (Taken in a dark alley)See how many worker bees gathered light for me? Pretty awesome huh?